Skift

Episode Notes Thousands of hotel workers went on strikeacross several large U.S. cities between Sunday and Tuesday. Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill examines why the strikes are taking place and what they mean for the hotel industry.  More than 9,000 workers at 21 hotels in 9 cities went on strike on Tuesday. O’Neill notes that hotels are struggling to balance maximizing profits with worker demands for better pay and improved working conditions. Gwen Mills, president of union Unite Here, told Skift in June that workers want increased wages as hotel revenue per room had gone up in recent months.  Roughly 40,000 hotel workers in 22 North American markets have union contracts that could expire in the next year. Unite Here has threatened to expand strikes to 65 hotels in up to a dozen cities if its demands aren’t met. Next, investor Elliott Investment Management now owns 10% of Southwest Airlines’ common stock shares. That enables Elliott to hold a special meeting during which it could vote to make big chan